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Full-Text Articles in Population Biology
Land Cover Composition, But Not Weather, Affects Female Wild Turkey Roost Site Selection, Kaj Overturf
Land Cover Composition, But Not Weather, Affects Female Wild Turkey Roost Site Selection, Kaj Overturf
Honors College
Populations at a species’ northern range extent are often presented with more challenges than those in more southern regions, given that winters are generally harsher, and the reproductive season is shorter in these northern regions. Wild turkeys (Meleagris gallopavo) are near their northern range limit in Maine, and there have been no studies that have researched turkey roosting here. Wild turkeys roost in trees at night, and we predicted that roost selection would be affected by changing weather conditions, particularly during winter when temperatures are expected to be coldest. We also predicted that land cover composition would affect …
Diet And Prey Availability Of Sturgeons In The Penobscot River, Maine, Matthew Dzaugis
Diet And Prey Availability Of Sturgeons In The Penobscot River, Maine, Matthew Dzaugis
Honors College
Although vital to the protection and conservation of species listed under the U.S. Endangered Species Act, critical habitat of shortnose sturgeon and Atlantic sturgeon in the Penobscot River, Maine have not yet been described. Critical habitat includes food availability as well as the physical characteristics of foraging habitat. To characterize seasonal availability of benthic prey, a ponar grab was used to collect over 125 benthic samples between 21 May and 8 October 2012. Samples were stratified throughout the river and broadly categorized by sediment type. All organisms within samples were identified to the family level. To characterize diet, stomach contents …